[For Seniors] Fun and Engaging Recreational Activities in Nursing Homes

Balloon volleyball with newspaper-stick bats

Recreation for seniors / Activities during the COVID-19 pandemic / Guaranteed crowd-pleaser: Balloon volleyball using newspaper-stick paddles

Balloon volleyball played using rolled-up newspaper sticks lets you reach farther with the tool, while also challenging more delicate control of force.

It’s also important to treat the table like a volleyball court: set up a proper net in the middle so you can enjoy the volleyball atmosphere.

The higher the net, the more it encourages players to hit the balloon upward, which naturally directs their gaze up and can help improve posture.

Rather than focusing on winning, encouraging players to keep the rally going will likely help them enjoy it for longer.

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kappamaki

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Exercises related to spring

Recommended for April and May: A 35-minute spring-themed exercise routine! A collection of exercises popular at day-service centers.

Did you know that people with declining cognitive function often show signs such as lower leg muscle mass, fewer red blood cells, and reduced agility? This time, we’ll introduce exercises with a spring-themed twist that can help address these issues.

The flutter-and-stop hand movement trains agility, and the leg-raising movement strengthens everything from the legs to the abdominal muscles.

Using onomatopoeia—like “pika-pika” (sparkling) for a shiny entrance ceremony and “goku-goku” (gulping) for cherry-blossom viewing—stimulates brain activity, and expressing them with the body adds exercise benefits.

The content is bound to make you chuckle whether you do it or watch it, making it perfect for recreational activities in senior care facilities.

Fill-in-the-blank with a spring theme

[Whiteboard Rec] Word Fill-in Brain Training! For Activating Seniors’ Brains!

It’s a game where you draw circles on a whiteboard—some with blank spaces and some with letters—and have players think of words by filling in the blanks.

While making use of the letters already written, they come up with words of that length.

The broad range of choices helps stimulate the brain.

If you prepare the letters in advance with a spring theme, players can enjoy a sense of spring while still having plenty of options to form words, which is recommended.

The difficulty changes depending on the number of letters and where the blanks are placed, so try various patterns to have players think of different words.

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kappamaki

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An evolved word-association game with a spring theme

[Whiteboard Rec] Activate your brain with an evolved association game!

This is a variation on a word-association game where you throw out a theme word and have participants think of words that fit the condition.

Write two blocks on the board—adjectives like “cute” or “round,” and nouns like “animals” or “vegetables”—and have them quickly come up with combinations of the two.

Setting a rule like “things related to spring” makes it easier to form images from scenery, so that kind of tweak is recommended.

Since participants must think of combinations instantly after they’re specified, it should effectively stimulate the brain.

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kappamaki

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Sing and pass it around! Ball relay

All you need is a ball! This is fun♪ Sing and pass-the-ball activity!!

Here’s an idea for a rhythm-based ball-passing game.

First, participants sit in a circle.

One person starts with the ball and passes it to the next person in time with the music; that person then passes it to the next, and so on.

When the music stops, the person holding the ball gets to drop out of the game.

You can also adjust the game by adding more balls depending on the number of participants.

Singing along while playing provides brain training benefits, and listening to favorite songs can boost motivation, which adds to the appeal.

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yamamoto

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Intense Balloon Volleyball

[Day Service Recreation] An evolved version of balloon volleyball! #DayService #DayServiceRecreation

It’s the same as balloon volleyball in that you keep the rally going without letting the balloon drop, but the only change is the number of balloons.

Since you’ll be chasing two balloons, not only your striking motion but also your concentration and dynamic vision will be tested.

A key point is that the balloons won’t necessarily be in the same place—when they fly apart, you’ll follow them with your head and gaze, so your body will likely loosen up as the game goes on.

As the number of balloons increases, the game becomes more intense and demands greater concentration, so start with a small number and gradually work your way up.

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kappamaki

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wet mop

What's Inside the Box? 2: Enjoying My Junior's Fright — Assist Shinwa

It’s a collection of soft, thin strands, and it’s wet.

If you were to touch it without seeing it, some of you might imagine it’s something alive.

If it’s a well-used mop, when you touch it and smell it, you might wonder, “What’s that smell?” and feel even more unsure about what it is.

If you happen to move the mop while gingerly touching it, you might let out a scream and run away.

Since it’s a cleaning tool that’s widely used, it’s also recommended because it’s easy to prepare.

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kojifumi

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